[A Few Hours Later]
Beruel and Kido were in the process of ridding the Fairies of the life-threatening nanomachines inside them—with the Fairy King doing most of the work, and Beruel filing the Fairies in an orderly fashion to increase the efficiency required.
The both of them were in the middle of this when they felt an immense pressure that emanated from the Eastern Kingdom.
The surge of what could only be described as malevolent energy coursed through them, and they felt chills pervading their bodies. The swirling dark portal in the sky seemed to be leaking its contents into a single location.
And that spelled an unpredictable calamity to come.
"Should we go and check that out? It looks bad." Kido asked, concern etched on his face.
Beruel remained silent for some time, lost in his own thoughts. He had to weigh his options—saving his people as fast as possible, or the world.
"Jared and the main team should be in charge of that region. If they were unable to stop this… I don't see what we can do." He muttered.
Beruel was right.
Most of their heavy hitters—if not all—were supposed to be there. If they failed, then just the Fairy King and one Midas wouldn't change much.
"Still, I'm worried about everyone…" He added, tightening his fist as he glared at the spreading dark clouds.
"Let's go, Kido. I'm not sure of what we can do, but I can't afford to stay here while my family perishes."
Kido gave a soft smile and nodded. It turns out he too felt the same.
"Yeah. Let's go."
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[MOMENTS EARLIER…]
[Southern Continent, Beast Kingdom]
The Beast Kingdom Recovery Expedition was meant to be the most problematic of all the assaults.
Not only were the enemies completely organic, but they were Beastfolks whom Jared had cured, thus making them extremely powerful—and very loyal.
In essence, if one were to come to their land with the intention of taking it over, then they would fight till their last breath. They would defend their land with honor, and wouldn't care about throwing their lives away to protect the leader they had sworn loyalty to.
… If only that was the case.
"W-we surrender!"
The Beastfolk, after experiencing Vaizer and Reed in action, realizing that the two were practically unstoppable by this world's standards, instantly gave up.
It was a pity their Beast King wasn't present to see their shameful decision.
The Beastfolk, who had gotten introduced to life without Mana Overload, must have gotten softer over the years. Perhaps they now valued life too much to throw theirs away.
They wanted to grow stronger, live longer, and have even more children. Who among them would desire to throw their lives away so meaninglessly?
"We'll be taking over this land. No longer will you be under Jared Leonard's control. Neither will you be subjects to Gerard." Vaizer declared to the trembling people.
He still remembered his past life in this place. The desire to become the king of these people was long gone. Once he established enough order, and a new King was selected, he would leave this place.
'My wives… my children…'
He remembered their lovely smiles, and the way they often warmed his heart. He missed them every day—so much so that it hurt at times.
He didn't want to relive those memories, so it was best to let his past go.
'Nothing is waiting for me here.' He smiled sadly, watching over the lands.
"It seems you really won't be ruling your people any longer." Reed's voice interrupted Vaizer's thoughts.
The old Mage drew closer to the smiling Beastfolk. He had a wry smile plastered on his face, and he too seemed distant in his thoughts.
"You know, after this is all over, I'm thinking of spending the rest of my days as an Adventurer. I want to explore more of this world, discover hidden treasures, and defeat monsters." Reed said with a smile.
Frankly, he had already had his fill with society and its intricacies. He wanted more freedom now.
"I'm not going senile, am I?" He grinned.
"You're not. In fact, I was thinking the same thing just now." Vaizer returned Reed's warm smile.
The old man must have wanted to cheer him up, and he succeeded. Being an Adventurer, enjoying the pleasures of the world as well as the dangers, perhaps that was what he needed.
"That would be nice. Where do you reckon we begin from?" Vaizer added.
"Well… I'm thinking of Land Of Eternal Glaciers far North."
"Oh? Any specific reason why?"
"I've only heard rumors and myths. I want to see for myself, if there's a Frost Dragon dwelling within the Glacier Cave. It would be nice to see if we could get the Frost Dragon and travel the world on its back as we continue our Adventure."
"That sounds pretty reasonable."
"Once we gather enough experience and treasures, we can even open an Adventurers Academy, or something. I'll spend the rest of my old age bragging to young'uns about my epic adventures, while teaching them to follow their dreams and stuff."
The more Vaizer heard of Reed Sterling's plans, the more he felt inspired to join the old man. Something about the picture he painted resonated with him.
He thought of the danger, the pleasure… and then the fulfillment.
"I guess that doesn't sound so bad."
"No, it doesn't."
Both men laughed heartily, enjoying each other's company as the surrendered Beastfolk watched in sheer confusion and timidity.
… But then…
"What is that?"
Black clouds formed from a distance, and the direction was one they were all too familiar with—the Eastern Kingdom.
"It seems everything didn't go exactly according to plan," Reed whispered, his brows narrowing as he made the statement.
The dreadful energy he was sensing was too dense and malevolent to be dismissible. It had to be the endgame of their prime enemy.
"We should go and help them out… as much as we can." Reed tightened his fist as he stared at the distant clouds.
"It seems our Adventuring plans will have to be put on hold, Reed."
"Right, you are."
The pair laughed, knowing deep within themselves that the plans they had just relished, and looked forward to, was most likely going to be snuffed out.
… And very soon as well.
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[A/N]
We're going to the main story now. Let's see what's going on...
Here's the link.
